What recent proposed changes to Connecticut’s trucking regulations may mean for drivers

By Erik Ofgang, Connecticut Magazine

Published 2:10 pm, Wednesday, November 11, 2015

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What recent proposed changes to Connecticut’s trucking regulations may mean for drivers

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The 2002 Oldsmobile motored southbound on I-95 in New Haven. It was a sunny day in August of 2014 and Gwendolyn Buskey was driving the car, which her mother had loaned her. Her passenger was Vera Mercer, a pregnant friend who Buskey was driving to Bridgeport Hospital for a scheduled caesarian section.

Around exit 46, a tractor-trailer in front of Buskey’s vehicle slowed down due to traffic congestion. Buskey started to reduce speed as well. Behind her was another tractor-trailer driven by Fidel Rodriguez of Reading, Pa.

Highway safety analysts say it’s a common scenario.

“Many accidents involve trucks rear-ending vehicles that have stopped or slowed because of accidents or roadwork,” wrote Howard Abramson in an August editorial in the New York Times. He added, “More people will be killed in traffic accidents involving large trucks this year than have died in all of the domestic commercial airline crashes over the past 45 years, if past trends hold true.”

When Buskey’s car stopped, the tractor-trailer behind her rear-ended her vehicle smashing the car into the tractor-trailer in front of her. The car was crushed and Buskey, 53, was pronounced dead at the scene. Firefighters rushed to cut Mercer out of the car in the hope that she and her baby would survive.

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Trucks are clearly a vital part of the nation’s economy and truck drivers—who have rigorous license requirements—are not to blame for most trucking accidents; according to the most recent federal tallies, only about one out of three truck-involved accidents are the fault of the truck operator. However, members of the trucking industry are currently supporting changes to federal rules they believe will increase trucking viability without compromising safety, but which are creating concern for some highway safety experts.